Engineering Commons^™

Optimal Energy For Cell Radiosensitivity Enhancement By Gold Nanoparticles Using Synchrotron-Based Monoenergetic Photon Beams, Wan Nordiana Rahman, Stephanie Corde, Naoto Yagi, Siti Aishah Abdul Aziz, Nathan Annabell, Moshi Geso

Stéphanie Corde

Gold nanoparticles have been shown to enhance radiation doses delivered to biological targets due to the high absorption coefficient of gold atoms, stemming from their high atomic number (Z) and physical density. These properties significantly increase the likelihood of photoelectric effects and Compton scattering interactions. Gold nanoparticles are a novel radiosensitizing agent that can potentially be used to increase the effectiveness of current radiation therapy techniques and improve the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. However, the optimum radiosensitization effect of gold nanoparticles is strongly dependent on photon energy, which theoretically is predicted to occur in the kilovoltage range of energy. …